Woody Paige's Mailbag

Jhoulys Chacin mows down Pirates as Rockies win to halt losing skid

Rockies' Dexter Fowler slides safely into second for a stolen base against the Pirates in Pittsburgh on Friday night. More photos from the Rockies' win. (Keith Srakocic, The Associated Press)

PITTSBURGH — In the quiet of the Rockies' clubhouse Thursday night in Atlanta, Troy Tulowitzki was ejected and dejected. He had been run from a game because of his repeated use of the word "no" to plate umpire Marvin Hudson.

His burst of temper was poorly timed with the bench short, but there were more than a few players who weren't bothered by his short fuse. The Rockies sleepwalked through a beatdown by the Braves that was embarrassing on every level. So a little emotion wasn't the worst thing.

"The key is that we continue to play hard and play the game the right way and let everything unfold from there," Tulowitzki said.

What seemed like ambitious optimism turned into a blueprint Friday night as the Rockies broke a four-game losing streak behind the brilliance of Jhoulys Chacin and timely hitting in a 4-2 victory over the Pirates at sold-out PNC Park.

"He was nasty. That's the best I've seen him," Tulowitzki said of Chacin, who pitched the final three innings with a compression sleeve on his right forearm after being struck by a line drive. "He's tough. He did exactly what we needed."

Tulowitzki did his part to redeem himself from his early exit, homering on his first at-bat to give Colorado its first lead since Tuesday against the Braves. It was his 20th home run of the season, the fifth time he's reached that total in his career, providing a glimpse into his unique skill set as a shortstop.

But this game was about Chacin the Machine. Detroit Tigers manager Jim Leyland is fond of saying that momentum in baseball is tied to that day's starting pitcher. They are the hub of baseball's universe, the equivalent of a hockey goalie or an NFL quarterback. When the starter is right, a lot of other things can go wrong.

Troy Tulowitzki turns a double play in the second inning against the Pirates in Pittsburgh on Friday. More Rockies photos. (Justin K. Aller, Getty Images)

Little did go wrong for Chacin on Friday, when fans received free Pirates T-shirts. He accomplished everything but a complete game in one of the most impressive outings of his career. The right-hander was a model of efficiency, allowing just one run and six hits in eight innings. He required only 96 pitches and threw an eye-popping 70 strikes. He was everything the previous four Rockies starters were not.

The right-hander lived ahead of the count, forcing aggression and weak swings on secondary pitches. He painted with a small brush, staying out of the middle of the plate and away from the barrel of the bat.

Rockies starting pitcher Jhoulys Chacin looks on from the bench after leaving Friday's game against the Pirates. More photos. (Justin K. Aller, Getty Images)

Armed with a two-year contract before spring training that eased his mind and left him determined to reward the club's faith, Chacin has pitched like a legitimate front-of-the-rotation arm this season. Colorado is 13-8 in his games, second-best to Jorge De La Rosa (14-8), who pitches Saturday.

Chacin maneuvered around three straight hits in the third inning, limiting the damage to one run when Pedro Alvarez grounded into a double play.

After consecutive singles by Corey Dickerson and Tulowitzki in the sixth inning (Dickerson was hitting third with Carlos Gonzalez hurt and Michael Cuddyer out until Saturday), Todd Helton delivered. Nearly 17 years to the day that he made his big-league debut at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh, Helton lined a single up the middle, scoring a pair of runs.

They proved necessary with Rex Brother's high-wire act in the ninth. After Alvarez doubled in a run, manager Walt Weiss, who was late at the switch to prevent Tulowitzki's ejection Thursday, jogged to the mound. He wanted his message clear, the urgency unmistakable.

Jorge De La Rosa is still with the Rockies, which says a lot about what they think of him. He was the Rockies' most valuable piece at baseball's trade deadline, but they never shopped him. There was a reason: Team owner Dick Monfort said the Rockies plan to exercise De La Rosa's $11 million club option next season, and not for the purpose of trading him. De La Rosa is coming off his worst start of the season, when he let the strike zone affect his performance. Francisco Liriano is arguably the best winter addition of any team. The former Twins ace has recaptured his form, demonstrating a good fastball and slider and a wicked changeup. He has allowed one run or fewer in 10 of his 15 starts and owns a 1.61 ERA in seven home games this season. Troy E. Renck, The Denver Post